The Wonderful 101 is a whirlwind of superhero spectacle, throwing you into the role of a leader commanding an ever-growing army of tiny heroes. You'll morph your team into giant fists, swords, and other forms to battle colossal aliens, utilizing quick reflexes and strategic thinking in equal measure. It's visually dazzling and incredibly unique, but the unusual controls and occasional chaotic camerawork can make mastery a challenge. Still, The Wonderful 101 delivers pure unfiltered fun for those willing to embrace its joyful absurdity.
when i say that this game saved my life, i mean it in every sense of the word. this game holds such a deeply important and foundational part of my being, and i truly can't recommend it enough. for everything that it's done for me, i firmly believe it can do for everyone who plays.
our story begins with a rag-tag team of heroes one hundred strong, battling it out with otherworldly threats every other day to decide the fate of the earth. as the game progresses, you get a chance to see the many ways they interact with each other and the world around them. it's well paced and has plenty of twists & turns along the way. replaying the game all the way through will give you context you would have otherwise missed, to boot.
this game is a fun and unique experience initially crafted for the wiiU, with the main crux of the gameplay being the unite morph feature; wonderful ones link together in single file line, creating the wonder-liner. by drawing shapes, you can morph your allies into weapons, objects, tools and more. the best way i can think of to describe the gameplay is something akin to super sentai pikmin, what with how you command an army of bite-sized heroes to do what you want.
now before anything, what issues do i have with this game? quite literally only one. and it only applies to the remaster.
the gameplay translates well onto other platforms, with the sole exception of the fact that the dual screen is clunkily implemented. while on its home console it would be as simple as looking down, the single-screen adaptation of this game brings with it challenge. most of the time you either need to have the screen brought up with a button combination, or have the main screen shrunk off to the side to make room for the sub screen. neither method is particularly well done, but it's honestly decent enough for the purpose it serves. most of the time the main screen is all you need, but it's in those finicky (and honestly gimmicky) moments that it becomes an issue.
aside from that, everything else in this game is absolutely stellar. the characters are well fleshed out and engaging, the story is easy to follow with genuinely intriguing beats, and the gameplay is unlike anything else i've seen. by far, this game has some of my favourite mechanics in any video game.
combat flows smoothly and rapidly, divided into operations (sections) that provide ample opportunity for things like speedrunning and perfecting your craft. if there's a level you enjoy, you can work at it over and over again to earn the prestigious pure platinum ranking at the end of the level. you can repeat any mission at any time, with most being split into 3 operations. you must play through each operation from the beginning, though; so going through in one straight shot is the only method of grinding out difficult parts.
if collection is more your speed, the game provides for you as well; collectables are rife in this game, providing you with lore, gallery pieces, achievements, hidden surprises, and much more. crafting is a smaller part, but it provides you items to use in levels once you have collected enough resources. the game rewards you for exploring through these things. slow or fast, whatever you want; the wonderful 101 provides and accommodates.
in that gameplay, there is also room for customization. finding your main and building a kit that works for you is part of the charm. the progression of this kit is resource-based, but well implemented. the crucial bits of the base kit are cheap, and any upgrades to those scale accordingly.
now, onto what i said earlier. this game genuinely did save my life. i was 11 in 2013. if it wasn't for the wonderful 101, i would not have been around to celebrate my 20th this year. it's hard to believe it's been that long since the darkest point in my life, but i'm a testament to the fact that awful times can and will get better with a little help.
i won't go into detail, but the only joy i found came in watching nintendo trailers with my brother. i think we used to watch them in the 3ds eshop. but lo and behold, the trailer for the wonderful 101 showed up one day. i was obsessed right from the get-go. a team of super heroes that work with and rely upon one another in such an intimate way to save the entire earth... something about it struck me. i watched that trailer over and over and over again, every single day. and when the wonderful 101 extended trailer came out, i watched that into the ground as well. i can still quote it word for word.
i played that game every single day. it was my light. when things were bad, i knew the wonderful ones would have my back. i felt like part of something. i genuinely did. the opening cinematic reminded me of that every time i booted up the game. "i knew we forgot someone; you." it gives me chills to this very day. i would seek out any and all fan art, i wrote fan fiction placing a gaudy little self insert into the world of the wonderful ones, i based everything i did around it. it became my life. it was my hope. it was everything to me. that little light at the end of the tunnel.
this is a game where the characters are accepted as they are, and regardless of their flaws they were still a part of the team. their unique abilities become something that is worked with, instead of repressed. they still contributed something to the world regardless of what they were. whether they were a teacher, a student, a prodigy, a detective or an artist, they all became equal when they put on the mask.
for those unaware, "masking" is a neurodivergent term that essentially equates to pretending to be "normal" in the eyes of others. it involves suppressing your symptoms and ignoring what comes naturally to you. masking costs a lot of energy to maintain. when you let the mask down, when you doff what is expected of you... that is where the true, authentic self is. the symbolism of the mask in this game is present; in the mask, there comes a level of detachment... yet there also comes power in letting that mask down, as you'll see later on in the story.
i experienced all of this far before my diagnosis with autism, but i feel that my experience with the wonderful 101 was a major cornerstone in understanding myself and the way i interact with the world because of it. it resonated with me for that exact purpose. everyone in the game is flawed, they interact with their surroundings in a unique way... yet they are not shunned for it. in fact, it becomes a mechanic, this unique individual contribution. this was my first true special interest, and it persists to this day.
the wonderful 101 is about finding yourself. finding others who, despite any differences, appreciate and respect you. and it's about working as one despite these differences. more than anything, it's about pushing past the trauma you have experienced, and becoming better for it. over and over again, characters are shown to be broken, hampered, hurt by their past... yet always, no matter what, they push past. they find their stride, and walk that path with power and confidence. finding who you are in relation to your unique circumstances, that's how you grow. that's where true power is.
unity, found family, appreciation. that's what this game is at its core. the explosions and supermassive monsters are the fun little cake on top, but that true meaning is there if you look. and it means something different to everyone who plays. that's the magic of this game.
replaying and rediscovering this game that means so much to me is like a dream come true. and now that it's accessible to more people than ever before, i urge you to play. i urge you to become a part of the wonderful 101. it might just give you what it gave me all those years ago.
putting it into words is nearly impossible, but i've done what i can here. it's something truly wonderful.
our story begins with a rag-tag team of heroes one hundred strong, battling it out with otherworldly threats every other day to decide the fate of the earth. as the game progresses, you get a chance to see the many ways they interact with each other and the world around them. it's well paced and has plenty of twists & turns along the way. replaying the game all the way through will give you context you would have otherwise missed, to boot.
this game is a fun and unique experience initially crafted for the wiiU, with the main crux of the gameplay being the unite morph feature; wonderful ones link together in single file line, creating the wonder-liner. by drawing shapes, you can morph your allies into weapons, objects, tools and more. the best way i can think of to describe the gameplay is something akin to super sentai pikmin, what with how you command an army of bite-sized heroes to do what you want.
now before anything, what issues do i have with this game? quite literally only one. and it only applies to the remaster.
the gameplay translates well onto other platforms, with the sole exception of the fact that the dual screen is clunkily implemented. while on its home console it would be as simple as looking down, the single-screen adaptation of this game brings with it challenge. most of the time you either need to have the screen brought up with a button combination, or have the main screen shrunk off to the side to make room for the sub screen. neither method is particularly well done, but it's honestly decent enough for the purpose it serves. most of the time the main screen is all you need, but it's in those finicky (and honestly gimmicky) moments that it becomes an issue.
aside from that, everything else in this game is absolutely stellar. the characters are well fleshed out and engaging, the story is easy to follow with genuinely intriguing beats, and the gameplay is unlike anything else i've seen. by far, this game has some of my favourite mechanics in any video game.
combat flows smoothly and rapidly, divided into operations (sections) that provide ample opportunity for things like speedrunning and perfecting your craft. if there's a level you enjoy, you can work at it over and over again to earn the prestigious pure platinum ranking at the end of the level. you can repeat any mission at any time, with most being split into 3 operations. you must play through each operation from the beginning, though; so going through in one straight shot is the only method of grinding out difficult parts.
if collection is more your speed, the game provides for you as well; collectables are rife in this game, providing you with lore, gallery pieces, achievements, hidden surprises, and much more. crafting is a smaller part, but it provides you items to use in levels once you have collected enough resources. the game rewards you for exploring through these things. slow or fast, whatever you want; the wonderful 101 provides and accommodates.
in that gameplay, there is also room for customization. finding your main and building a kit that works for you is part of the charm. the progression of this kit is resource-based, but well implemented. the crucial bits of the base kit are cheap, and any upgrades to those scale accordingly.
now, onto what i said earlier. this game genuinely did save my life. i was 11 in 2013. if it wasn't for the wonderful 101, i would not have been around to celebrate my 20th this year. it's hard to believe it's been that long since the darkest point in my life, but i'm a testament to the fact that awful times can and will get better with a little help.
i won't go into detail, but the only joy i found came in watching nintendo trailers with my brother. i think we used to watch them in the 3ds eshop. but lo and behold, the trailer for the wonderful 101 showed up one day. i was obsessed right from the get-go. a team of super heroes that work with and rely upon one another in such an intimate way to save the entire earth... something about it struck me. i watched that trailer over and over and over again, every single day. and when the wonderful 101 extended trailer came out, i watched that into the ground as well. i can still quote it word for word.
i played that game every single day. it was my light. when things were bad, i knew the wonderful ones would have my back. i felt like part of something. i genuinely did. the opening cinematic reminded me of that every time i booted up the game. "i knew we forgot someone; you." it gives me chills to this very day. i would seek out any and all fan art, i wrote fan fiction placing a gaudy little self insert into the world of the wonderful ones, i based everything i did around it. it became my life. it was my hope. it was everything to me. that little light at the end of the tunnel.
this is a game where the characters are accepted as they are, and regardless of their flaws they were still a part of the team. their unique abilities become something that is worked with, instead of repressed. they still contributed something to the world regardless of what they were. whether they were a teacher, a student, a prodigy, a detective or an artist, they all became equal when they put on the mask.
for those unaware, "masking" is a neurodivergent term that essentially equates to pretending to be "normal" in the eyes of others. it involves suppressing your symptoms and ignoring what comes naturally to you. masking costs a lot of energy to maintain. when you let the mask down, when you doff what is expected of you... that is where the true, authentic self is. the symbolism of the mask in this game is present; in the mask, there comes a level of detachment... yet there also comes power in letting that mask down, as you'll see later on in the story.
i experienced all of this far before my diagnosis with autism, but i feel that my experience with the wonderful 101 was a major cornerstone in understanding myself and the way i interact with the world because of it. it resonated with me for that exact purpose. everyone in the game is flawed, they interact with their surroundings in a unique way... yet they are not shunned for it. in fact, it becomes a mechanic, this unique individual contribution. this was my first true special interest, and it persists to this day.
the wonderful 101 is about finding yourself. finding others who, despite any differences, appreciate and respect you. and it's about working as one despite these differences. more than anything, it's about pushing past the trauma you have experienced, and becoming better for it. over and over again, characters are shown to be broken, hampered, hurt by their past... yet always, no matter what, they push past. they find their stride, and walk that path with power and confidence. finding who you are in relation to your unique circumstances, that's how you grow. that's where true power is.
unity, found family, appreciation. that's what this game is at its core. the explosions and supermassive monsters are the fun little cake on top, but that true meaning is there if you look. and it means something different to everyone who plays. that's the magic of this game.
replaying and rediscovering this game that means so much to me is like a dream come true. and now that it's accessible to more people than ever before, i urge you to play. i urge you to become a part of the wonderful 101. it might just give you what it gave me all those years ago.
putting it into words is nearly impossible, but i've done what i can here. it's something truly wonderful.